Tell me about : Mercedes W126

i paid 1k for my 500 sec.



mpg, well anywhere from 8 - 25, depending on how it was driven and where.
didnt like towns fuel wise.
rust wise, check the usual places, but especially the underside of the parcel shelf, round the seal of the rear window and the boot floor.
i was lucky, my worst rust was along the edge of the boot, but it hadnt broken the paint.
rear windows are notorious for delaminating, and cost a fortune to replace.
don't know about the sel versions cos ive not had one yet.
utter piffle is the man in the know.

Hi mate, W126's are quality rides. From my (limited) knowledge, ownership and the things I noticed when stripping one I would definitely check out the panel underneath the rear window. These 80's Mercs have nasty habit of collecting water in the corners of the rear screen which rots that rear window apperture out a good 'un. When you're looking at one, feel under the screen from inside the boot. If you pull out a big chunk of rust then you've got a big bodywork bill on your hands - they don't make repair panels for that area so you've got to get one made up or make one yourself and weld it in perfectly so it doesn't leak.

Wings also tend to go just in front of the arches but there are plenty of bits like that in the Merc scrappies across the country.

Peope often put chrome arches on, too - these are rust traps and although it looks kinda pimpin', there are probably horrors underneath.

The front chassis kick-up on mine had a massive hole in but I'm not sure if that's a W126 thing or a bought-a Benz-from-a-guy-who-called-himself-dodgy-sid thing. Worth checking nonetheless.

If its speccded to the hilt it'll probably have height-adjustable hydraulic suspension - check it works because it's bastid expensive to buy a new pump. It'll sit loooow if it's knackered.

Don't buy a 280 because they're rubbish. The 500 or 560 are the best to go for simply because V8's are cool and the big ones are just as thirsty as the rest but tons more powerful, to the tune of 300bhp

Bits are cheap (compared with moderns and J stuff) from the likes of GSF and Euro Car Parts and loads of the Merc parts departments I've been to have had W126 stuff in stock.

Don't be too put off by high-mile V8's, they barely go above 2500rpm (mine cruised at 70-odd at 2600rpm) but do get the timing chain changed as soon as possible unless there's very strong evidence to suggest it's been done recently like (main dealer receipt).

There are people on here that know loads about these so they will give you a far better breakdown. But as far as I'm concerned, they're awesome cars, really reliable and insanely comfortable. If you go for a saloon shape (like the eBay car) get an SEL, the L bit means it has a longer wheelbase and an insane amount of passenger leg room.

Cool options to look out for are power reclining rear seats, super-spec power front seats with power headrests and inflatable backrest thingys and power steering column.

If it's your first classic, you can't really go wring with a Merc, especially a W126. They were streaks ahead of their time and have got to be amongst the best luxobarges ever built.

Good luck!

M

I've got a 420SEL (well, had - the wife's nicked in now that she can drive....) and it's great!

4.2 V8 (231bhp), 195k on the clock, I've just converted it to run on LPG too so it's cheap to run. It will do mid 20s mpg on a run, and around 15mpg round town, so it's cheap to run now it's on LPG! lol

The most common rot areas are the front wings (underneath and around the indicators) and under the rear window as streetrules said.

If the gearbox feels a bit clonky, then don't worry, just change the filter and fluid and chances are it'll be sweet again. If it slips, then walk away, gearbox rebuilds are expensive, and there are plenty out there!

Don't go for a straight six, they're barely more economical, underpowered and generally don't have all the toys that the large engined ones have. Mine's got full leather, electric front seats (even the headrests go up and down...), air-con, electric windows/sunroof/ariel etc. and it rocks.

I couldn't think of a more practical everyday family car to be honest!!

Cheers, Martin

Keep the search going, there's plenty out there and they're well worth tracking down!

FWIW, mine cost £330 and just has a couple of rust bubbles and needed 2 exhaust downpipes and a crossover pipe (£200 - genuine parts from the local motor factor!!) and it's needed nothing other than routine maintenance since!

I paid

£1170 for this unseen off ebay





500se

Fully loaded, grey leather heated seats, AC (needed gassing), Electric everything, cruise etc

Needed a pair of Dampers on the rear from ECP (Made a world of difference to the ride and handling) and I managed to kill the Gearbox ;D

426Nm of torque so they are torque limited in the 1st 3 gears

But I was Full Bore Full throttle Manual shifting at the time which destroyed it

£650 fitted for another Box

Smoked it around for 3 or 4 months and sold it for just under £1300 on Ebay again ;D

Epic car and would have another one Tomorrow

Motorway slip roads on Kickdown were just hilarious ;D ;D

Would love to change ratios in one as they are geared for the moon, and fit a supra manual box to have some fun with ;D but ultimately they are great for motorways in sublime comfort rather than Back road blasting

HTH
Dom

someone I no is sellin one of these its on an h plate 4 door with 193.000 on the clock full merc history,the car looks like its done 40.000 ish (mint)but its up for around 2k thought it was on the high side

Does anyone know roughly how much it would cost to change a cam chain on a 500 SEC, i have found what could be a really nice one but has done 103k with no indication of a timing chain change.

Do you know roughly how much a garage might charge for parts and the labour time required to do that?

From £120-£220 depending where you take it. You can do it yourself really easily it your new chain comes with a split link.

I would go for genuine MB parts - for the sake of a few squid you'll get a better product. And you won't want your chain snapping!

BenzBoy - did you try Ken mate?